MARTIN O’Neill insists that he’s not concerned by Portsmouth’s Europa League appeal.

FA Cup finalists Pompey looked set to miss out on a place in Europe next season as a result of them falling into administration.

However, the relegated south-coast club are appealing to the Football Association in order to secure a licence to compete in next season’s Europa League.

And the outcome of that appeal could threaten Villa’s own hopes of playing on the continent.

If Pompey fail, then the Europa League place will go to the seventh-placed Premier League team.

But, if Villa end the season sitting in seventh and Avram Grant’s side win their appeal, then O’Neill’s side would miss out on qualifying for Europe for the first time in three seasons.

The Villa boss insists that it’s not a worst case scenario that he’s worrying about.

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“I’m not concerned because I’m not sure what rights people have but they should have that opportunity to exercise those rights if that’s the case,” said O’Neill.

“I’m not exactly sure what Portsmouth’s situation is but let’s just say in the past when there wasn’t all the things hanging over Portsmouth, I believe that they as runners-up in the FA Cup to a team in the Champions League, would take a Europa League position.

“If those were the rules at the start of the year, fine.

“I don’t know what position Portsmouth are in or what position UEFA actually hold on these things.

“If it’s Portsmouth’s right to contest those things then why not?”

And O’Neill insists that his squad have not been given extra motivation by cash-strapped Pompey’s attempts to nab a place in Europe.

He continued: “Since the third week of the season when the league tables came out, when you would give some validity to the league tables, we’ve never been out of the top seven.

“So we’re really going to just have to stick in now, try and get a number of points and try and do it. So there’s plenty of motivation.”